Cruise Reviews

Imagine a ship with a weird design, everything is turned inward, the window views of some bars are blocked by equipment and always close the blinds of all windows at night. To see the sea you have to go to the pool deck and face the wind ... Read More

Imagine a ship with a weird design, everything is turned inward, the window views of some bars are blocked by equipment and always close the blinds of all windows at night. To see the sea you have to go to the pool deck and face the wind and mud. On the 6th floor deck there are side aisles, but there are no chairs to sit and read a book. Imagine that the service has no standard, indicating the lack of training of people. There are bars that make a "dry martini" with sweet martini ... In restaurants the maitres and waiters do not understand each other. If the passenger gets in one way, someone has a seat in the other. When you get to the other, have someone sit down ... on the other! It seems that there is no management and coordination. I only saw the managers at the formal presentation in the theater. And I saw it too in a bar, when the A&B manager and bar coordinator scolded a bartender who didn't understand the request of a stupid Brazilian monoglot passenger. I was very embarrassed to watch the scene, especially since that bartender is one of the most competent I've encountered in the 8 days of the trip.
The bars do not serve any snack to accompany the drinks. Even paying. No cold popcorn. Nothing!
The food is bland and unimaginative. Very little protein, usually a roasted leg of something. The rest very full of sauce. The a la carte restaurants also have buffet. In restaurants the service is hard-working, but again without standard. If you're lucky enough to hit a table served by a friendly and attentive waiter, it was lucky. If it's another, unlucky yours. The a la carte menu is little varied, with few protein options and few pastas. Believe me, an Italian steamer serving few pasta options and often with seafood sauces.
Overall, it has what it promises, but seems to lack proper management in hospitality and A&B. Many times since check-in, it seems that the crew do not understand each other and are beating their heads in front of the passengers.
What saves are the evening shows of a very good professional and aesthetic level.
The television has very few channels and does not have an information channel with the en-route position, weather and temperature out there. There are no music channels either, so bring your mp3 and speaker if you like it.
Bottom line: I took this 8-day cruise to experience the brand because I want to make a crossing. One thing I can estimate: MSC NO MORE. Read Less

Poor customer service information we were due to start sailing from Venice on 23rd of November 2019, instead we were put on a coach travelled 2.5 hours to Trieste without prior notices
Buffet restaurant not enough capabilities so often ... Read More

Poor customer service information we were due to start sailing from Venice on 23rd of November 2019, instead we were put on a coach travelled 2.5 hours to Trieste without prior notices
Buffet restaurant not enough capabilities so often have to queue for sitting at breakfast and at lunch. Choice of food poor and not nicely cooked. The buffet restaurant is cramped and if wanted omelette one needs to go to get it from the outside kitchen , this is very poor arrangement as on windy days it's hard to push open the door to go outside .
We were given a very noisy cabin on deck 10, 1103 just below the kitchen galley on deck 11. On some nights we could hear trolly rolling and crashing. These cabins should be deleted if MSC has any thoughts for customer comfort and well being.
Even in the main restaurant the service can be half baked. And the food pretends to be fine dinning but in reality it is not that tasty.
Will think twice before going on a MSC cruise Read Less

We chose the Sinfonia for our November cruise as we'd had a brilliant experience on the same ship in May. Unfortunately, six months is a lifetime for this ship.
Departing from Venice, the embarkation was chaotic, unlike the earlier ... Read More

We chose the Sinfonia for our November cruise as we'd had a brilliant experience on the same ship in May. Unfortunately, six months is a lifetime for this ship.
Departing from Venice, the embarkation was chaotic, unlike the earlier easy and almost seamless experience in Genoa. Not enough staff and a shoving of Italians all trying to push past made the experience one to forget.
The lifeboat drill took 45 minutes to complete, with none of us any the wiser as to what we were supposed to do. No instructions, just bored and confused staff walking around scanning people's room cards. Unprofessional and downright dangerous in the event of anything really happening. Didn't instil any of us with confidence of how a real emergency would be handled.
We had two tender ports on this cruise and the embarkation fiasco was repeated all over again, compounded by choppy waters and a complete lack of information from the staff. No explanations for the long delays or even staff to talk to. When the tendering began, the two staff allocated were literally shoved aside by the Italians, leaving one of the female attendants in tears. Again, the lack of thought and staff led to chaos.
The buffet was a joke. Hardly any choice when compared to other lines and chaos trying to find anywhere to sit. It was obvious they prefer people to use the main dining rooms where they can control portion sizes. Waiter service in the bars started off slow but improved by the third day.
On the plus side, the rooms were clean and to a good standard but the shower curtains really should be replaced with screens. Our steward was friendly, as was the majority of staff, apart from the surly security guards checking you in and out. Miserable lot.
Entertainment was OK, if a bit samey. No waiter service in the theatre but that's hardly the end of the world.
Due to the flooding of Venice, we were redirected to Trieste, where coaches were laid on to take us to the airport. Nice touch. However, this was spoiled by the cack-handed way they dealt with people trying to get on them. Instead of allocating dozens of staff to send groups off to the twenty or so coaches waiting, they insisted on filling each coach, one by one. With lots olf slow, older people, this took ages. Luckily, we were at the front of the queue to get a coach but those behind us must have been spitting feathers with worry at missing their flights.
We have another cruise already booked for next April and if this is just as bad, MSC will lose our custom permanently, although I doubt they will care. Shame, as we had such a good time on the same ship earlier in the year. Read Less